


Sweeter Than Taffy

by mel_tokio



Category: Tales of Symphonia
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Smut, Humor, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-13
Updated: 2020-11-13
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:01:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,143
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27542755
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mel_tokio/pseuds/mel_tokio
Summary: Lloyd learns a valuable lesson on the importance of packing effectively.
Relationships: Colette Brunel/Lloyd Irving
Comments: 1
Kudos: 2





	Sweeter Than Taffy

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted on Tumblr for Colloyd Week 2019. Reposted here with minor edits.

After all these years of traveling, Lloyd really ought to be used to packing effectively, but it seemed that he always managed to forget something when moving from one location to the next. Once he’d left a bag full of gels at a campsite. A couple of times he’d forgotten his toothbrush. Once he’d even neglected to pack clean underwear and needed to buy several new pairs right after checking in at the Sybak inn. This had to be one of the worst packing slip-ups he’d ever made, though.

“Are you sure they’re not in one of the little side pockets?”

Lloyd shook his head.

“No, thinking back on it, I definitely remember leaving them in that drawer in our room in Palmacosta, and you didn’t take them out, right?”

“No, sorry.”

He walked over to the bed and ruffled Colette’s hair, still messy from lying in bed.

“It’s not your fault, silly. I’m the one who put them in there, so I should have remembered to put them back in the suitcase when we left.”

“Yeah, but it’s still a shame.” She sighed. “Want me to go pick up some more? There’s that new general store that opened up recently.”

He flicked her in the forehead and reached down to pick his pants up off the floor.

“What was I just saying, you dork? It’s my fault, so I’ll take care of it.” He stuck his feet through the legs of his pants and pulled them up.

“But, um, you’re not really decent to go out right now, are you?”

“What do you me—?” He followed Colette’s eyes to their point of focus, which happened to be right where he was reaching to button his pants up. “Oh.”

She giggled, leaning over to squeeze his hand.

“Don’t worry about it; I can go to the store.”

He squirmed out of his pants and replaced them with one of the towels hanging on the wall.

“It’s fine. No need for you to get dressed. I’ll just take a quick shower and then I should be okay to go.”

“Well, if you insist. Just try not to take too long, okay?”

He smiled. Colette’s metamorphosis was slow, almost imperceptible, but as the years went by, she was finally starting to be more assertive and open about what she wanted. It filled him with joy.

“Yep!” He shot a thumbs-up in her direction. “I’ll get dressed and head out as soon as I’m...uh, ya know, soft.”

* * *

To the untrained eye, it would be impossible to tell that Luin had effectively been rebuilt from the ground up only a few years ago. From what Lloyd could remember, the city seemed even busier now than it had been before its destruction, though some of that was likely due to the upcoming festival to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the reconstruction. That was what had brought Lloyd and Colette there, as well as Sheena, with whom the two had enjoyed a pleasant dinner in a lovely waterfront restaurant the previous evening.

Lloyd looked down at his town map, making sure he was heading in the right direction to the new general store. He had never visited it before and would have been excited to check it out under different circumstances. According to the locals, it had a wide selection of snacks that couldn’t be bought anywhere else. As he entered the building, he pondered picking up a little something to eat while he was there.

He took a glance around the store and quickly spotted the condoms on display just next to the cash register. There was no line, so he should be out of the store and back in bed with Colette in no time. He made his way to the counter and—

“Oh, hey, Lloyd!”

He jumped at the voice and looked back towards it to see Sheena entering the store, bells ringing as the door shut behind her.

_ Oh, shit. _

His whole body stiffened, and he could feel sweat beading up all over his face.

“H-hi, Sheena. What brings you here?”

She walked over to him.

“Just grabbing some snacks. There’s supposed to be some good stuff here. How about you?”

Oh, Goddess, he was standing right in front of the condoms. She was totally going to figure it out, wasn’t she?

“Uh…”

He looked at the other items on the counter shelf, searching for an alibi.

Tomato basil flavored chips.

_ No, she knows I don’t like tomato. _

Hemorrhoid cream.

_ Ugh, that’s even more embarrassing than the truth! _

A bucket full of saltwater taffy in every color of the rainbow.

_ Perfect. _

“I-I just wanted to try some of this taffy!” he sputtered. “I heard it’s really good!”

Sheena peeked over his shoulder.

“Ooh, that does look good. I think I might have to get some myself.”

He backed away from the counter.

“Well, uh, don’t let me get in your way. Feel free to grab some.”

“Don’t be silly! You were there first, so you can get yours first.”

_ Dammit, Sheena. Why do you have to be so polite? _

“No, you can go first. I’m not sure what flavor I want.”

Sheena looked at him in confusion.

“Huh? Don’t most people just get a mix of all the flavors?”

Lloyd groaned internally.

_ Gah, now you’re using logic? When will this end? _

“Yeah, but…I’m really hungry, and I’m in the mood to eat all of mine in one sitting. If I get different flavors, they might clash. I just have to choose the best one. I might be a while deciding, though, so don’t go waiting around for me.”

_ Nice save! _

“Um, okay.”

Sheena looked a little weirded out by his rationalization, but she didn’t question him any further, thank goodness. She reached in front of him to grab a handful of taffy and plopped it into her shopping basket

“I’ll go get the rest of my stuff then. See you around, I guess.”

“Yeah, see ya.”

Lloyd walked back up to the counter, careful to face it sideways as he pretended to think intently about the merits of each flavor of taffy so he could keep an eye on Sheena and see when she left the store. He saw her head down the first of three aisles, examining the array of snacks with a hand on her chin. The clock on the wall seemed to be ticking at half its proper speed.

_ Please, for the love of the Goddess, just decide what you want already! _

After an eternity (or, according to the clock, about one minute), she finally grabbed a bag of dried seaweed…and went down the next aisle.

Lloyd sighed. This was going to take a while.

A petite elderly woman suddenly appeared next to him, unloading some bottles of medicine onto the counter with a shaky hand. She looked at him and flashed a wrinkly smile.

“Young man, I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation with your friend just now, and might I recommend the peppermint taffy? It was always my favorite before I started to lose my teeth.”

Well, crap. What was he going to do now? Reject the advice of a sweet old lady? But at this rate, Sheena definitely wouldn’t be out of the store by the time he was ready to check out. He needed to think of something, and fast.

He smiled back at the woman.

“Uh, that sounds good. Thanks for the tip, grams!”

He reached into the bucket and fished around for red and white pieces of taffy as slowly as he possibly could without looking overly suspicious. One, two, three, four, five…He hadn’t grabbed a basket, as he’d only come into the store for one thing, so he was limited to the amount he could fit in one hand. As he grabbed his eighth piece of taffy, his fingers began to cramp up, and he accepted defeat.

He looked behind him. Sheena was in the third and final aisle now. He’d just have to shop a little longer to shake her off.

A cooler against the wall caught his eye.

“Guess I’m gonna need a drink, too, huh?”

_ Why the hell did I say that out loud? Who announces what they’re going to buy out loud? Now everyone in the store is gonna think I’m nuts. Dammit, I just want to get out of here already! _

Round two of intently eyeing consumables like his life depended on his choice of flavor began. Fortunately there were several rows of beverages to choose from here, so he could make his indecision look a little more convincing this time around.

The cashier finished bagging the old lady’s goods, and Sheena carried her basket over to the cash register, taking her place.

_ Finally. _

“Your total will be 412 gald, ma’am.”

“All right, let me just find some change…”

Lloyd resisted the urge to tap his foot.

_ You don’t need to give him exact change, Sheena. Let him take care of it. It’s his job; he’ll definitely be able to do it faster than you. _

After far too long, Sheena paid for her snacks and the cashier handed her her bag.

“See you later, Lloyd!” she called on the way out.

“Later!”

The second she walked out the door, he yanked a bottle of chocolate milk out of the cooler and practically sprinted to the cash register, grabbing a box of condoms with the force of a tropical storm. He threw everything onto the counter, reaching in his pocket for his wallet as the cashier bagged his items. The kid was probably about sixteen, and Lloyd could see him blush a little as he checked the price on the most important item, but he didn’t make any comments on it at least. Teenagers these days sure were mature when it came to—

Lloyd’s train of thought was promptly interrupted by a chorus of jingling bells and a slamming door.

Sheena raced up next to him, breathing heavily as she leaned over the counter.

“Excuse me, I think I left my wallet here. Have you seen—”

She looked down at the counter. Sure enough, her wallet was there…right in front of the box of condoms the cashier was about to bag.

Her face, already red from running back to the store, flushed even brighter as the boy handed her wallet over to her. Her eyes fell to the floor.

“Uh, thanks. Have a nice day, both of you.”

She sped back out the door before Lloyd could say anything to her, which was probably for the best.

He wanted to die.

“Um…” The cashier broke the silence. “Your total is 659 gald, sir.”

Lloyd threw 700 gald into his hand.

“K-keep the change.”

He snatched up his bag, thankful that it was at least opaque, and left the store, not sure he’d ever be able to shop there again without reliving this moment in painful detail. His shoulders sank with a heavy sigh.

_ Well, at least I got what I came for. _

* * *

By the end of the ten-minute walk back to the inn, the pain had mostly dulled. He and Sheena were both adults, right? This awkward moment would surely be forgotten in no time. And there would be alcohol at the festival, right? A little booze would surely ease any tension between them.

Arriving at the door to his and Colette’s room, he reached into his pocket for the key. He was actually kind of looking forward to unwrapping some of that taffy. He’d share some with Colette, of course.

_ I hope she’s not too upset that I took so lo— _

As he turned the key, he could hear a faint buzzing noise coming from the room.

He peeked in and the sound immediately stopped. He could see Colette, still lying in bed, now with a pillow on top of her lap, her face red as a cherry.

“Oh, um, hi, Lloyd.”

He quickly walked in and shut the door behind him.

“S-sorry,” she stuttered. “You were just gone for so long, and I was, you know…in the mood. I didn’t even hear you opening the door. You don’t think anyone else in the inn heard, do you?”

He slid into the bed next to her and kissed her forehead. Damn, she was cute when she was embarrassed.

“Don’t worry,” he reassured her. “It wasn’t that loud. Did it feel good?”

She raised her hand to his head and started running her fingers through his hair.

“Yeah, but…”

“But…?”

A shy smile slowly spread across her face.

“I’ll bet you can make me feel even better.” She winked.

And as Colette leaned over to unbutton his shirt and he waited eagerly to do the same to hers, Lloyd couldn’t help but think that some things were a lot more exciting to unwrap than taffy.


End file.
